Dig up the soil to a depth of 6 to 10 inches, using a spade or spading fork. (Deeper for parsnips and some other roots.  Ed.) Break up all the lumps with the spade or fork.

If you live in a section where your neighbors have gardens, you might club together to hire a teamster for a day to do the plowing and harrowing for you all, thus saving a large amount of labor.

After your garden has been well dug, it must be fertilized before any planting is done.  In order to produce large and well-grown crops it is often necessary to fertilize before each planting.  Very good prepared fertilizers can be bought at seed stores, but horse or cow manure is much better, as it lightens the soil in addition to supplying plant food.  Use street sweepings if you can get them.

The manure should be well dug into the ground, at least to the full depth of the top soil.  The ground should then be thoroughly raked, as seeds must be sown in soil which has been finely powdered.

Lay out the garden, keeping the rows straight with a line.  Straight rows are practically a necessity, not only for easier culture but for economy in space.

After you have marked all of your rows, the next step is opening the furrow. (A furrow is a shallow trench.) That is done with the hoe.  (Best and quickest with a wheel hoe.  Ed.) After the furrow is opened, it is necessary that the seed be sown and immediately covered before the soil has dried In covering the seeds the soil must be firmly pressed down with the foot.  This is important.

In buying seed it is best to go to some well-established seed house, or, if that can’t be done, to order by mail rather than to take needless chances.  With most kinds of seeds a package is sufficient for a twenty-foot row.

Begin to break up the hard surface of the soil between the plants soon after they appear, using a hand cultivator or hoe, and keep it loose throughout the season.  This kills weeds; it lets in air to the plant roots and keeps the moisture in the ground.

By constantly stirring the top soil after your plants appear, the necessity of watering can be largely avoided except in very dry weather.  An occasional soaking of the soil is better than frequent sprinkling.  Water your garden either very early in the morning or after sundown.  It is better not to water when the sun is shining hot.

The planting scheme can be altered to suit your individual taste.  For instance, peas and cabbage are included because almost everybody likes to have them fresh from their garden; but they occupy more space in proportion to their value than beets and carrots.  Therefore a small garden could be made more profitable by omitting them altogether, or cutting them down in amount and increasing the amount of carrots, beets, and turnips planted; or any of the vegetables mentioned which may not be in favor with the family can be left out.

The kind of season we have would change the date of planting.  In raising vegetables, as in everything else, one should use one’s common (or garden variety of) sense.  A good rule is to wait until the ground has warmed up a bit.  Never try to work in soil wet enough to be sticky, or muddy; wait until it dries enough to crumble readily.